That concern is a real and serious one, but there is also a more direct and crude problem: parties (or their lawyers) bribing, or making backdoor deals with, the arbitrators to secure a favorable outcome.

Crystallex — owed $1.4 billion for the expropriation of its Venezuela mining subsidiary — has moved U.S. Federal Court in Delaware to seize Petroleos de Venezuela Holding, the parent company of PDVSA’s American unit Citgo Holding.

About the ISDS platform

The ISDS platform is a resource tool about the controversial investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) mechanism in trade and investment agreements. It aims to provide the latest news, campaign tools and critical analysis to groups engaged in defeating ISDS.